Deny Permit: Ohio Fracking Waste Injection Well Close To Area of Seismic Activity; Free Showing of Oklahoma Shakedown at Februrary 12 Youngstown Townhall
Youngstown, Ohio, February 9, 2016 – Frackfree Mahoning Valley has learned, as of February
9, 2016, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) has not yet given
permission for fracking waste injection to begin at a newly drilled injection
well located in Vienna, Ohio, near family homes and the airport. This new
information came to Frackfree Mahoning Valley from Teresa Mills of Buckeye
Forest Council, who received it as a result of a public records request.
Teresa Mills also uncovered, via a public
records request dated January 29, 2016, that it seems that Oklahoma-based KTCA
Holdings LLC is the new owner of the airport-area Vienna injection well,
previously listed as owned by KDA. KDA’s Vienna, Ohio injection well operation
is associated with an April, 2015 toxic waste release that resulted in
destruction of two wetlands and other adverse impacts.
Saying that the
injection well is close to an “ area of known seismic activity,” Buckeye Forest
Council and Frackfree Mahoning Valley are calling for the Ohio Department of
Natural Resources (ODNR) to deny the injection permit for the Vienna, Ohio
injection well near Vienna residences. The groups are also calling for two
Weathersfield/ Niles injection wells to remain closed. One of these wells has
been linked in news reports and a scientific study with man-made earthquakes.
“One huge
problem is that it’s not known where some faults lie until they are activated
and an earthquake occurs. Then it’s too
late. Drilling and injecting into injection
wells is essentially gambling with the public health and safety, drinking water
integrity, and the well-being of the community. That is unacceptable. It’s
egregious, actually. The “Findings, Conclusions and Order of the [Oil &
Gas] Commission” that ruled on the AWMS injection well said with regard to
seismicity, geophysics, and injection operations that ‘… to a certain extent
both the industry and the Division are ‘working with their eyes closed.’ [p. 12,
8/12/15] ODNR must deny the permit to inject in order to protect the public
health and safety and stay consistent with its other decisions. It’s too high risk for man-made earthquakes
and drinking water contamination, “said Teresa Mills of Buckeye Forest Council.
The groups say that ODNR should never have
permitted the Vienna, Ohio well to be drilled in the first place, considering
ODNR’s previous Order by the Chief (9/24/14) that denied a toxic waste injection
permit at the Khalil #3 injection well, in east Youngstown, Mahoning County
finding it is “located in close proximity to an area of known seismic
activity.”
The new Vienna well is only 6.7 miles from the
AWMS injection well in Weathersfield/ Niles that ODNR ordered to be closed due
to seismic activity. The Vienna well is
only 8.6 miles from the Northstar 1 injection well, site of the now-famous 4.0
magnitude induced quake that ODNR also shut down. It is 16.9 miles from the man-made earthquake
site in Poland Township, Ohio. Therefore, the groups believe that the Vienna,
Ohio well is also close to “an area of known seismic activity,” and it must be
stopped by ODNR. (See map below).
Furthermore, Mills
found that the Vienna well in question is of similar depth to those mentioned
in ODNR’s previous decisions. From what the groups can gather, the wells use
very similar operations to those that have been shut down or denied a permit to
inject in Youngstown and Weathersfield/ Niles.
If ODNR is to remain consistent with its previous decisions regarding
Khalil and the American Water Management Services (AWMS) well, they must deny
this permit to inject. (Links to the
Khalil and AWMS decisions are below).
Frackfree
Mahoning Valley will rally at two local injection well sites on Wednesday,
February 10, 2016 to call for them to remain closed or denied a permit to
inject. Frackfree Mahoning Valley will gather at the Weathersfield/ Niles
injection well on public property starting at 1:15 PM at the Weathersfield/Niles
injection well near 1745 N. Main Street, Niles, Ohio. The group will then move
to public property adjacent to the Vienna, Ohio injection well on State Route
193 near the Youngstown – Warren Regional Airport for a rally that will begin
at 2:15 PM....Read more:
http://www.frackfreemahoning.blogspot.com/2016/02/deny-permit-ohio-fracking-waste-injection-well-seismic-activity-also-oklahoma-shakedown-feb12-youngstown.html
